2023 Emmett N. Leith Medal Winner

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Optica Names David Jones Brady the 2023 Emmett N. Leith Medal Recipient

Optica (formerly OSA), Advancing Optics and Photonics Worldwide, is pleased to announce that David Jones Brady, University of Arizona, USA, been selected as the 2023 recipient of the Emmett N. Leith Medal. Brady is honored for the invention of sparse holography.

Brady obtained his Master’s degree and Ph.D. in applied physics from California Institute of Technology, USA. He is the J.W. and H.M. Goodman Endowed Professor of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona, USA and was previously on the faculty at the University of Illinois, USA and Duke University, USA.

His work focuses on computational imaging and spectroscopy with a particular focus on the estimation of high-dimensional objects from low-dimensional measurements. With compressive holography, for example, Brady explored the estimation of 3D objects from 2D holograms. At Duke University, he led the AWARE program to create the first terrestrial gigapixel cameras. His recent work focuses on camera arrays for extreme multidimensional imaging. Brady also has a long-standing interest in artificial neural networks ranging from his Ph.D. thesis on optical networks to current work on real-time neural processing of large-scale array data. His work is used in commercial x-ray, millimeter wave, mass spectrometry, and optical spectrometry systems, with work on high-resolution cameras being developed through Aqueti, Inc. and Baseball Cloud.

He has also received additional honors, including the SPIE Dennis Gabor Award and the Stansel Family Distinguished Research Award. He is a Fellow of Optics, IEEE and SPIE.

Established in 2006 the Leith Medal recognizes seminal contributions to the field of optical information processing. In assessing the significance of the contribution, consideration is given to all aspects including theoretical and conceptual breakthroughs as well as practical applications. It honors Emmett N. Leith, a world-renowned scientist in holography and optical information processing, and is endowed by General Dynamics, the University of Michigan College of Engineering, USA, Physical Optics Corporation and individual contributors, including Alexander Sawchuk, Joseph Goodman, James R. Fienup, G. Michael Morris, Tom Cathey and James Wyant.

About Optica

Optica (formerly OSA), Advancing Optics and Photonics Worldwide, is the society dedicated to promoting the generation, application, archiving and dissemination of knowledge in the field. Founded in 1916, it is the leading organization for scientists, engineers, business professionals, students and others interested in the science of light. Optica's renowned publications, meetings, online resources and in-person activities fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate scientific, technical and educational achievement. Discover more at: Optica.org